The USA Cricket appointed Jonathan Atkeison as their new Chief Executive Officer, effective from August 1, fulfilling a critical requirement of the International Cricket Council (ICC) to keep their associate nation status intact. The ICC had issued a notice to the USA Cricket to fulfil two essential criteria, which would help them earn the National Governing Body (NGB) status needed to avoid getting kicked out of LA Olympics 2028.
As per the report from Times of India, the notice from ICC was sent to the USA Cricket for not meeting two essential criteria including the absence of a CEO and non-compliance of governance norms set by the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC). The appointment of Jonathan Atkeison as CEO fulfils one of the critical requirements, but still, the USA Cricket has to comply with the governance norms of the USOPC, to keep its position as the ICC Associate Nation.
It is vital to remember that these two requirements are important for USA Cricket to become the NGB at the LA 2028.
The statement on the USA Cricket website had Jonathan Atkeison talk about how he wants to take cricket to the next level in the American sporting landscape. He said, “I’m honoured to join the team at USA Cricket. It’s an incredible time for the sport here in the United States with the historic performance of the men’s national team in the recent T20 World Cup, the completion of the second season of Major League Cricket, and the first opportunity to showcase cricket in the Olympics here on home soil during the LA28 games. Our goal is to build a world-class organisation to capitalise on that momentum, and firmly establish cricket’s position in the American sporting landscape.”
Moreover, Jonathan Atkeison has already served as the Chief Operating Officer for the USA Rugby, bringing growth and development to the organisation during his tenure.